PIC splashes out £50 million to finance the UK’s first reservoir since 1991

Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC), a specialist insurer of defined benefit pension funds, has invested £50 million in Portsmouth Water to fund the construction of the Havant Thicket Reservoir, an 8.7 billion litres of water storage and the first reservoir to be built in the UK since the 1990s.

The reservoir in southern Hampshire is intended to address the water resource challenge faced by much of the south east of England and protect Hampshire’s rare chalk streams.

There are a large number of natural springs in the Havant area which deliver a high quality, sustainable supply of water all year round and are thought to be one of the largest individual sources of spring water in Europe.

The new reservoir will store excess water and use it to facilitate a bulk supply to Southern Water, another regulated water company operating in the south east of England.

The investment consists of £50 million of CPI-linked senior debt in Portsmouth Water, maturing in 2037, matching pensioner payments.

Thomas Foucoin, senior debt origination manager at PIC, said: “This is a major infrastructure project which will play a critical role in ensuring adequate water supply to local communities across the south east of England, and aligns well with PIC’s own values and purpose.

“PIC has provided over £5 billion of financing to greenfield and brownfield infrastructure projects, as well as corporate borrowers, in the last five years.”